Was I supposed to root for the protagonists?

Started watching this because it appeared on Netflix, and the first episodes were an easy watch. I didn't have many expectations of the drama, since I hadn't watched the drama this one is being compared to, either. Suffice to say, I hated it.

-JINMI: Although I do understand that Jinmi was meant to be innocent and unable to love, I think there's a thin line in these dramas between being innocent and being stupid or lacking in any kind of reaction. I don't know if it's the script or the actress, but there were moments where characters were discussing something important, and Jinmi had little to no reaction to what was being said. It would make sense if she didn't understand shit, but even in situations where she understood the context, there was no reaction. It felt mostly like monologues designed as dialogues, and it made me feel like the protagonist didn't have much protagonism, especially in the first 20 chapters. When she is goes to the Mortal Realm, we're not privy to her real difficulties, and, with that, we, the viewers, cannot see her development, both emotionally and in skills, which left me, personally, unsatisfied. In the last stretch, it's just fabricated drama of why she can't be with Xufeng, to the agonize over him in repetitive scenes that add nothing. In short, she was a boring female lead. There is nothing wrong with innocent protagonists who develop over time, but Jinmi was not it.

- XUFENG: I disliked this character quite a lot. Not only was he extremely privileged, he seemed uncapable of seeing it. Acting like a boy with a crush, he didn't seem to care nor understand that Jinmi was uncapable of loving or that she was unaware of gender differences due to the way she had been isolated. The drama tries to paint him as this heroic, romantic lead, but many of his choices are... well, not heroic. When he goes to the Mortal Realm, and decides to die to be with Jinmi, did he ever think of all the people he was damning by dying? No, because him (or the writer) do not care about anyone other than our protagonists. Everyone else's suffering is secondary to them. He expected people to forgive his parents when they had been extremely vile, and he always acted holier-than-thou. He didn't have an interesting background or story, and he was quite boring, though less boring than Jinmi.

-RUNYU: I liked him a lot more on the principle of developing sympathy over what he had gone through. His character development was far more interesting, even when he became obssessive and resentful. I could see where this came from, and as he did stupid shit, you could understand why he did what he did, and it made him far more compelling of a character. In general, I felt more for him because of the obvious bias everyone had, not just for our protagonists, but for the Emperor and Empress as well. Nobody cared that the Emperor and Empress had done extremely vile things. Instead, almost all our secondary characters blamed Runyu for trying to find justice for his mother and for his family. This is why I felt that the writers themselves only cared about our protagonists suffering, regardless of any other person that suffered, which made me dislike the drama more and more.

In terms of plot the plot was absolutely vapid. You could tell were the plot was going, and it was nothing of innovation. There were stupid conveniences that saved our protagonists from having them go through actually interesting happenings. For example, Jinmi (in the Mortal Realm) had to choose between saving her family and serving the King. It was something hard and impactful, and it made me feel for her because it's a lose-lose situation no matter what. But then, the choice she makes doesn't even matter, because magically her family was already protected and she could do what she wanted to do. It made the drama of Jinmi finding it hard to choose asinine, because the plot resolved everything for her anyway. There were many, many scenes that could have been cut because they added nothing to the story. I spent hours with characters I didn't give a shit about because they weren't even relevant to the plot for 2/3 of the drama (like the Demon Realm Princess) or just in general were barely relevant. This drama could have been cut down to 20 episodes, and it would have been able to have tighter storytelling and less meandering around in order to fill time.

However, if there is anything I did like, it was the drama with the protagonists parents. In fact that was the most interesting subplot I saw. I was actually interest in their past, and especially when everyone discovered the truth, how would that affect the present. However, the plot ended quickly, and it almost affected nothing, because at the end of the day nobody did anything regarding what had happened with Jinmi's mom.

The costumes and sets were beautiful, and a pleasure to watch. The CGI is bad, but when you compare to other Chinese dramas, this one's okay. I liked the opening theme.

In terms of acting, I honestly didn't feel the main actress all that much. She did best in her crying scenes, but everything else was dull. The actress for Xufeng's mom used exaggerated gestures that seemed more theatrical than anything else. It would have made more sense if everyone had that direction, but it was obvious it was only her that overacted (it was funny sometimes, though). Everyone else was in various shades of okay.

Overall, if you're bored and want to watch something without thinking too much, this is it. If you're looking for a tighter plot or more interesting characters, watch something else.

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It is rare for me to watch a drama while it's airing, mostly because I am very impatient and I can't bear having to wait week after week for new episodes. Even if I am interested in a drama that is airing, I usually wait until it's over to watch it. Extraordinary You was an exception. Its premise was so interesting and original that it made me break my unspoken rule of not watching on-air dramas.

The beginning of the drama was good. It plunged you into a world that looked odd for the protagonist, who wished desperately to change her fate, and be permitted to live. The FL was independent, funny, and chipper, it made you root for her. I wanted her to find answers, to be able to defeat the (quite sadistic) writer and be the writer of her own destiny.

And then... the second half of the drama came. The interesting questions raised morphed into more questions that would never be answered. Why wasn't Danoh able to change the stage when she was trying to do it alone, but when Haru helped her it worked? What are the mechanics of the world they live in? If background characters have nowhere to go, why is Haru the only one skulking at school when it's nighttime? Why are some characters gaining self-awareness, but others never do?

Nothing is ever answered, as the story devolves into a love triangle that nobody needed or wanted. And it's not like love triangles are bad or unenjoyable on principle. They can be exciting if done well. But in a love triangle where the heroine has reiterated multiple times to the second lead that she loves ML and doesn't care much for anything else, why are the writers so hellbent on perpetuating a triangle where the second lead has no chance? It would have been better to develop and answer the questions they never answered.

Danoh was a hoot to watch initially, and I thank that to Kim Hyeyoon, who imbued the character with this cheerfulness that wasn't annoying to watch. It endeared you to her, and even as Danoh descended into a character who was obsessed with Haru (even though there were so many people that cared for her and loved her), Kim Hyeyoon managed to still make her somewhat likable. But she could not save the character, try as she might.

Haru only existed for the female lead, and while that could sound like something romantic for some people, it's especially boring for me. He has no hobbies of his own? He doesn't try to make new friends? I don't know. I mean, he was likable as well, but too one note for my taste. Still, Rowoon managed to do well with the character, so kudos for that.

Despite my praise, Danoh and Haru's love story got so boring to watch that I started focusing more in the side couple of Dohwa and Juda, who I liked, as they seemed actually more nuanced than our main leads (especially Juda). Imagine my anger when Juda, out of nowhere, decided to stay with Namjoo. To be honest, I wasn't angry because she didn't end up with Dohwa, but I was mad that it was never really explained in a way that made sense for Juda as a character. She had spent so many episodes shit-talking Namjoo, and all of a sudden, she decides to end up with him? I would have liked to see Juda's thought process to get to that point, but instead we spent the time watching our unwitting love triangle.

I really loved the OST, had to look for it while the drama was airing.

Being honest, I don't think this has much of a replay value, unless you like high school romance drama, though if you're looking for that, there are much better dramas out there.

In conclusion, this was wasted potential, but if you're still interested in watching, the fast forward button will be your friend in the second half.

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